Don't Play With Chaos
by Gunz Ablaze
Summary: For all you gamers out there, do yourselves a favor and listen to me: don't play with Chaos. There's a reason why it's the highest difficulty setting in the game. I just can't remember what that is.
1. Insert Disk

**I had to take down this story originally because I got stuck and I apologize for that. Here it is again with some improvements.**

**I hope all of you enjoy and if you are to favorite the story or put it on alert; all I ask is that you please review. I'd like to know if I'm doing a good job and so would other people when they browse the archives.**

**I do not own Tales of Graces in any way, shape, or form.**

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"Tales of the Abyss?" Weighing my options I answer myself with a shake of my head, pushing some of my brown hair behind my ears. As much as I loved poking fun at Luke, I didn't feel it in me today to put up with his whining.

My blue eyes glancing over the stacks of games on my entertainment center, I couldn't choose which one I wanted to play. I muttered off the labels as I went; 'Sly Cooper,' 'Persona,' 'Xenosaga,' they all didn't really strike me today as entertaining.

I let my gaze land on the series of Devil May Cry and decided against it, playing them now would just get me too excited and depressed about the new DMC coming out. I turned away for favor of my Wii and GameCube collection.

Paper Mario was fun but couldn't hold my attention long enough. I didn't feel like getting into Harvest Moon and was stuck in the gory mess that was No More Heroes. My hopes went up a bit as I landed on Tales of Symphonia before they feel again. I had beat the game more than five times, if I kept playing it at that rate then I would get bored of it, and I didn't want that to happen. My eyes turned over to its sequel; Dawn of the New World before quickly turning them away, 'Never again.'

The sigh of boredom dragged on with the day. One would think that with all the good games I had, there would be something to play. I clicked my tongue against the roof of my mouth and crossed my arms; glancing between my PS2 Slim and PS3.

Shrugging my shoulders, I grabbed the PS3 controller and figured that I'd let fate decide. Walking over to my bed, I picked up the TV remote, turned on the screen to the appropriate channel and sat down at the edge of my bed.

Wheel of Video Games; I pushed the power button in the middle of the console controller and with a beep the station came to life. Whatever mysterious disk was inside starting spinning and the black console thrummed as it scanned the game. What's it going to be fate?

The volume was a little loud as the regular opening chorus started up but I ignored it, pressing a pattern of R1 and L1 as the game automatically loaded itself. Namco's familiar logo faded onto the screen, I gave a grin; I had gotten Tales of Graces a few months ago, not really thinking much when I bought it besides the fact that it was a Tales game and that it needed to be in my collection.

I didn't know what to expect when I first started playing TOG but after a few weeks I had easily gotten hooked and many late hours were spent gaming through the night. I had recently beaten the final boss on hard mode, making Tales of Graces one of the first Tales games for me to beat on a higher difficulty setting than Normal.

Now, my plan was to take advantage of +New Game and do it all again on Chaos Mode.

I hummed to myself as I skipped the opening song. 'I made sure to get all the Soul Orbs I could before beating Lambda, so that's supposed to help my grade, right?' I shrugged, pressing on the new extra option; figuring that I'd come back for the theater option later.

Glancing at the option of playing Lineage and Legacies, I decided that it would have to be for another time and pressed on for a new game.

The choices for me to spend my grade came up and I gapped at how expensive the good things were. 'But that's why they're so good,' grumbling to myself I decided to stick to the basics: double experience, triple experience for the added bonus, inherit stamps, inherit titles, granted; I hadn't collected all the titles I could have but I did well for my first run through.

I thumbed over the other options and automatically selected on inherit books; it had taken me way too long to actually finish the collector's book, but Pascal's title had been worth it. Let's see: inherit gald, double gald, chain capacity +2, defiantly double SP.

I stopped over the option for a bigger inventory but decided against it, 'Adds more to the challenge.' Then again, was it really a challenge for me to play with quadruple the amount of experience? I shrug but kept them selected anyways and decided to use the last of my grade on skipping childhood.

Looking back over my choices I gave a short nod in approval and selected to start. The screen faded black and I felt the beginnings of a gleeful excited smile creep to my face. Get some drinks and fold out the chairs, because this is gonna be good.

I waited in my own buzzing excitement for the scene of Orlen Woods to appear but the screen remained blank and the only background music that played was the buzzing of the console fans. I raised a brow, counting the seconds and get out a groan as I pressed the controller power button. The home screen didn't appear like it was supposed to, meaning that my PS3 had over heated.

"Big lazy box of metal," I grumbled, standing up from my bed and reaching to hold down the power button. After a few seconds there was a series of beeps and the screen went white; bright white, intense fucking white.

"Shit!" I dropped the controller in favor of covering my now burning eyes and quickly yelped as the flimsy thing lands on my toes. "Dammit!" I whined, grabbing the shelf to keep from falling over something; namely myself.

Slowly, I reopen my eyes to give them the chance to adjust. The TV was now doing a better job at lighting my room than my lamp. I looked from the white screen back to my console, the green and blue lights flashing and gave an occasional beep. I groaned, and sat my hand against the black box, recoiling when I felt how hot it was.

It wasn't new for my PS3 to freeze up but that normally only happened after hours of playing. I would press the power button on the front, wait for it to go off, and then press the power button in the back for it to cool down. But as I waited, it didn't seem that the power would be going off on its own any time soon.

I give a loud sigh and made a mental check of my Grade Shop choices before reaching for the back switch. Just as my finger brushed against the black trigger, the TV gave another flash and the console, another beep.

A regular blank text box appeared on the screen. I lifted a brow at the random appearance and bent down to retrieve the controller, pressing X to continue. Slowly, white worlds drifted onto the dark surface in a waving effect. I snicker at the Power Point like presentation.

"Insert in the game?"

My brows lifted at the question, did it mean the disk? I sighed and reached for the control again to press the power button. As my finger skimmed the green lit surface I was forced to give a small yelp and take away my hand, automatically sticking my burnt finger into my mouth. "The fuck?!" I hissed, removing the offended index to look it over. I whimpered and made a face at my overly heated PS3; still beeping, fans still whirling.

I growled and glanced back at the screen, then noticed that new dialogue had appeared.

"Play with Chaos Mode?"

Yes No

I stared, a bit miffed. My game freezes, my TV flashes me, my console locks up then burns me, and now the game is playing without any trouble. "It's like Dawn of the New World all over again,' never again; _never_ again. Seeing as the game was sorting itself out, I moved the analog stick over for the desired answer at command, the TOG feather maker appears for me to make my choice.

I grinned, thumbing over the X button, "Duh." The box faded form the screen but the words remained; white against a white background slowly turned the words into a bleeding red. My grin slowly turned downward in a deep frown. This was new, I hadn't seen this only any playthroughs. Was it because I had the American version?

"Prevent chaos."

Hi, my name is Destiney Cheatham and this is the last thing I can remember before playing Chaos Mode.

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**I don't have a beta so if you are to see any mistakes please let me know in a comment. I am currently working on many other projects at once, so updates may be slow. Thank you for review, let me know what you think.**


	2. Start New Game

**So, I see that I got a couple of views for the first chapter and one who was very sweet to review. Thank you WarriorOfThePenAndPaper, here is your update.**

** From this point onwards, I will try in making each chapter a little longer than the last. I don't want to put too much in one chapter so I will try to stop between ten to twelve pages.**

**I do not own Tales of Graces nor its characters.**

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So, is this what it feels like to have a hangover; aching, skull splitting pain all around and in your head while you're body feels like it's been ran over by a garbage truck? If so, then remind me never to drink.

I keep my eyes closed to stay in my nice and safe world of black, _really _not wanting to open them right now. I hear the sounds of shifting tree's and birds singing, sound that would have been peaceful if only my head didn't feel like it was being crushed.

Knowing I can't just keep my eyes closed all the time I slowly open them, meeting a cloud covered and grey sky. I stared in silence, waiting for the throbbing in my brain to stop. Whatever I'm lying on is surprisingly soft but it smells odd.

I glance to the side to take a look at the ground; ash covered grey.

The first thing I notice is that there are trails of smoke lifting from burnt logs. I turn my body over, leaning up with my hands before sitting back on my legs. I searched around, confused. 'Where the hell am I?' I thought.

The boards and logs were either in burning piles or scattered around what looked to be a town, or at least what used to be.

The smoke and ash agitates my nose, causing me to sneeze and my head pulse from the sudden action. I gag before forcing myself to stand, staggering a little on my feet. As I reach to dust myself off from soot and dirt I notice something about my clothes.

In place of a grey shirt I was wearing some kind of thick, although comfortable, red blouse that stretched to my knees, over which I was wearing a long sleeved and dark brown vest. In place of a zipper and buttons in the front there were two small belt-like clasps. The material bunched a little around my neck, spreading to the back as a small hood. The sleeves were small and stopped at my elbows before folding and the jacket itself was short, cutting off at a little past my chest.

Rather than pants I was wearing something like denim stockings, black and soft against my skin, thin enough that it was comfortable but thick enough to keep me warm. A dark brown belt was wrapped around my waist, fitting snuggly and holding two pouches.

My ratty tennis shoes had been replaced with a brown pair of boots, two belt-like clasps in the front, similar to the jacket, and supported the back of my foot with a little bit of heel. I hated boots, but as I stood around they felt the same as when I walked in my tennis shoes; worn out and snug, I was almost sure I could run in them.

The clothes felt like they were made for me, hugging all the right places but leaving enough room for me to stretch and move without feeling cramped. It was almost as if I was still wearing my hoodie and jeans but if possible, they felt even more comfortable than them.

"Where'd they come from though?" I asked myself while giving another look around. Furrowing my brows, I didn't see anything familiar. "Where the fuck am I?" Screw language, I just woke up someplace other than home.

'Home.' The pain in my head suddenly flared up, causing me to hiss and rub at my templates. I let out a groan as it continued to get worse, knocking me over to grab a nearby beam for support. 'Shit, what happened to me?'

I had been at home; I was playing a game before I felt some huge thing knock me over my head. I blacked out and now here I am waking up in some god awful remains of a tornado attack? The pain died down a little and I took the chance to walk around, pausing when I heard the clank of metal shifting and weight at the back of my hips.

I reached back and felt my fingers come in contact with cold, smooth metal. After wrapping my hands around it I felt a lump form in both my throat and chest.

Even if my family was gun-nutty, they didn't need to be for me to know what I was holding.

I took a deep breath and pulled them both out of the holsters my belt was supporting. My hands shook as I held them both up in front of me, looking between the two. One was grey, the other black, and both looked automatic. I didn't pay enough attention to dad when he went on his gun-crazed tangents to know exactly what kind of guns I was holding, but a gun was a gun and I was holding two of them.

"Okay…I'm dreaming." I came to the conclusion and fit the weapons back where they belonged. I ran a hand through my hair and gave out a sigh, shaking my head. "I must have hit my head on something and fell asleep." I grumbled and started to walk around.

Boards and burnt wood, shingles and overturned trees; for a dream the place looked really realistic. I had stumbled upon what once had been a house, or at least what looked like it. The poor thing was collapsed in on itself, windows shattered and bricks scattered over-

It was then I noticed that there was no pavement. What should have been concrete streets were instead dirt roads. There were no grass yards, no car remains, and not a street sign to be found. As I walked around I began to notice that this little 'town' I had woken up in, looked like something that I was see in my history books.

"Weird." I muttered.

There were no people either, that was just creepy. It also sent a small twinge of panic through me, was I alone? I shook my head at the thought, 'This is a dream, nothing to worry about.'

I saw something glint on the ground and bent over to pick it up. It was a rock about the size of a small marble, colored green and rounded. As I rolled it in my palm I felt warmth coming from it. "Neat." I grinned, easily amused and opened a pouch to pocket the small thing.

As I did I found a few things; two little bottles, one was clear and full of red water while the other was orange and gave off the smell of mint. There was some green leave that made me raise a brow, and a little oval charm with a yellow center. Stuffing them all back in my pocket I decided it was best to leave them alone and continue exploring.

* * *

Over the pops and cackles of some small fires I hear a sound; it's not a bird or a plane, or the shifting of the far trees but instead it sounds the same as my guns when I move. It's the clank of metal and as it gets closer I feel my legs pull me behind a nearby pile of bricks and wood, bending over and down to hide.

As the footsteps stopped right between me and my hiding spot, I carefully peeked out from a small hole made from boards, biting my lip in nerves. I saw two men, covered head to toe in armor. Both wore some kind of mask in place of a helmet, and the swords at their hips had me gulping.

"It's just as the reports said, Captain Malik. There are no traces of the villagers anywhere, it's like they just vanished into thin air." I raised a brow, had I heard that right? Did one of them say Captain Malik? Like the Tales, Captain Malik? I tried to see who they were talking to but there was no way I could do that without being seen.

"It looks like there was a fire." I froze, my mind suddenly running miles at the familiar voice I had just heard. There was no fucking way that was who I thought it was.

I slowly turned and took steady steps away from my hiding spot, careful so I wouldn't get caught. Nearby was a more standing building I could go around and hide behind. "The storm had taken care of most of it, sir. However, there are a few remains of small brush still burning, nothing that will spread, of course." As I sneaked the conversation still went on.

"See to it that they don't." I heard the shift of metal and took off from there, using the noise to cover my own as I jot behind the building, quickly pressing my back to it and sliding down the brick.

"Oh my god." I whispered, "Okay, yeah this is most defiantly a dream." I sighed, running my hand through my hair and trying to get myself to calm down, my heart having attempted to jump out of my chest this entire time.

No way had I just heard Captain Malik and Asbel Llhant. That wasn't possible unless I was playing the game or dreaming. I took the chance to peek out from behind the wall and briefly saw the tail of a white coat turning behind a distant building. I glanced back to my previous hiding place and recognized the tall figure of Malik, talking with the two soldiers with his back turned to me.

Turning back forward I let out a deep breath. "So, what do I do?" I whimpered, feeling lightheaded and drawing my knee's up to set my forehead against them. "This is a dream, right? So maybe I could just talk to them?" I dashed the thought, 'No, I'm armed in a town that's got no people and I don't have so much as a scratch on me. They'll think I did something.'

I grumbled to myself and tipped my head back, bumping it against the wall. 'This is stupid, it's my dream. I can do whatever I want.' Having my pep talk over with I stood, dusting off my clothes and prepared to say hello, only to have a scream knocked out of me as I was charged into by a very large and very powerful dog.

"Watch out!" Too late, I felt brick and splinters dig into my back as I landed roughly a ways from where I had previously been standing. The force of the sudden collision had me tucking my body in for a roll, stopping to lie on my now poorly abused stomach.

That had hurt, that had actually fucking hurt. Wait, now I think about it my head had hurt before, hadn't it? You're not supposed to be able to feel pain in a dream, right? I hissed as I pushed myself up, shaking my head to clear it and looked around, instantly I froze as I heard growling coming directly from behind.

With wide eyes I slowly turned my head to look over my shoulder, coming face to face with an open mouth.

Hello, Nova Wolf. My, what big teeth you have.

The next thing that happens was almost too fast for me to of actually make out. The wolf's mouth was slapped closed by the sheath of a sword before being kicked away by a powerful foot. As I watched the creature skid to a stop from the attack I'm hefted up from underneath my left arm and set back on my feet, a white coated figure stepping between me and the monster.

"Are you alright?" Over my gapping like a fish I make out a stuttered 'yeah.' "Good, can you fight?" I gave him a look like he was crazy but he didn't see it, still faced forward to protect me.

The Nova Wolf growled, catching my attention. It's ears were laid flat against its bent down head, red eyes fixed on Asbel , and one paw kicking the ground like a bull ready to charge. My first instinct was to flee and not look back but instead I reached behind and drew my two guns.

Rather than replying with a confident 'fuck yeah' I whimpered, small and pathetic. "I can try."

He gave a nod, still not letting me see his face before charging for the wolf, leaving me staring dumbly and not knowing what to do-what was I supposed to be doing? Oh right, attack. Okay, I can do that. Aiming for the monster with one gun I make sure that Asbel is out of range before pulling the trigger, face falling as I hear a simple click.

'Dammit, you forgot the safety you idiot!' My mental-self slaps me in the face before guiding me to push a little switch on the side of each gun before aiming again.

Now, when you take your eyes away from a moving object said object is known to keep moving. In which case, here I am being charged at, yet again, by the Nova Wolf. My legs decide to lock themselves and one of my arms, thinking quickly, aims a gun for the oncoming monster before firing away.

I've never used a gun before and the force of the shots sends painful jolts of pressure up my arm, causing me to hiss. Then instead of being tackled again by the creature I suffer a painful swipe to the side, crying as I felt claws try to dig into my skin.

However, instead of tearing into my flesh, the wolf's nails are stopped by the thick cloth of my clothes, which are somehow strong enough to withstand the sharp attack. This doesn't stop me from being tossed to the side though.

Somehow, I manage to stay to my feet rather than roll and tumble. I lock both my eyes and gun back on the monster and shoot again, some bullets making contact and some missing by a mile. It's not until Asbel comes into view that I stop to let him attack, not wanting him to get caught up in the fire.

I couldn't help but stare in amazement as he swings his blade; cutting into the wolf with seven years of profession under his belt. Watching a battle in the game is one thing but this is serious, Asbel could really kill that thing.

Kill or be killed comes to mind and as the redhead kicks off and away from the wolf I set both my guns right back on it, firing away. My ears are ringing as I shoot, unused to the loud bangs and my arms have started to shake from the pressure.

I have to stop to move out of the way from an oncoming tackle, running close to Asbel before facing back towards the monster.

"Damn, what is this thing?" It leaves my mouth before I can stop it.

"Nova Wolf." He gives me a surprise look that causes me to bow my head and bit the inside of my mouth. 'Stupid, stupid.' "Look, does it matter? If we don't do something it's gonna kill us!" Sweat had already started beading on my skin.

"W-What do you want me to do?" I gawk at him, mentally groaning his name. As I open my mouth to snap at him, we're both interrupted by a loud, bloodcurdling howl.

I can't describe the sound. It could strip paint off a wall, break glass, and crack titanium, all at the same time. As it howls I can practically see the world shake from the noise, the ringing of my ears from the blasts of my guns is nothing compared to the ringing their doing now. My head feels like it's about to be cracked open, and Asbel isn't doing so good either; hands over his ears and eyes wide, mouth opened and screaming.

After what felt like hours of the horrible, excruciating noise, it stops. I try to catch my breath, blinking away tears that had formed from the sound. "What the hell?" The damage of my eardrums is enough to muffle Asbel's voice.

I look back at our enemy to see it emitting waves of red. Its eyes are now glowing brightly with bloodlust and suddenly it's changing right in front of us. Before its fur had been a ratty shade of brown and was a mess of flesh and hair, now it stood on edge and was molding into a different shape, sliding out into sharp points; like armor.

Its teeth were sharp before, but now they looked like knives, too large and big for the things mouth. What I think is foam and drool running off its hanging tongue dabs the ground with sizzling red; is it blood or acid?

Its claws are breaking its skin by how long they're getting, turning into daggers, sharp enough to do the job to me they couldn't before. The next thing I know is that an arm wraps around my waist and pulls me away.

Asbel had grabbed me and jumped out of the way of an attack, a blast of red energy that had been so fast, I hadn't even seen it. He landed us by some nearby rubble before letting me go and readying his sword, giving me a stone look. "What. Happened?"

I'm still speechless. What happened, indeed! The game has got nothing on this! This did not happen in the game! I mean, sure it looks a lot more like the Nova Wolf in the game, but good lord! I close my mouth, it having been dropped open this entire time, and shook my head. Honestly, I didn't know what to tell him.

"What do we do?!" I get back hold of myself and point my guns in its direction, gritting my teeth.

"Kill it!" He takes acceptance to this and charges, steering clear of my line of fire and bringing his blade down on the things hide. Instead of the sounds of cutting flesh I heard the clank of my bullets running into steel, Asbel's sword literally making sparks as it clashes with the wolf's new armor.

I notice that its tail is no longer covered in skin, but instead is a mix between armor and hide. At its tip fans out a series of deadly spikes that threaten Asbel as they come down in the direction of his form. "Look out!" I'm not fast enough to warn him, he takes the attack right to the side and is thrown away.

I stop my attacks and run to him as he struggles to get to his feet. There is nothing but two small holes in his jacket with no blood staining him, I assume that his clothes did the same as mine and blocked the attack. As I help him to his feet he pants, sweat dripping off his nose and chin, I'm not in any better shape myself.

"Why can't we hurt it?" He huffs, both tired and annoyed.

I see a faint light come from Asbel's hands and even though I want to, I don't have the energy to grin. The light turns from dim to almost blinding, coming off in a series of colors. "I'm not about to lose here!" Then it bursts waves upon waves of energy all in the palm of his hands.

"W-what?" I shake my head and point my gun back at the wolf; who for some reason is just as stunned as Asbel is.

"Come on, maybe we can kill it now." He gives me a doubting look before nodding and rather than using his sheath to attack he lunges for the monster and draws his blade.

Rather than watching the fireworks of lightning, I start shooting again, my attacks working again as Asbel broke its guard. "I hurt it!" He dodges to the side, avoiding the fangs of the wolf as it tries to take a bite. I take the chance to aim directly at the monsters face and sent waves of bullets towards it; bullets that for some reason I wasn't running out of.

By the time Asbel gets ready to make another strike the creature gives a gurgled yelp and seizes before falling over, giving a series of twitches on the ground. I stopped my firing, panting as I and Asbel watched the thing shudder, walking over to get a closer look at it. Foam had formed at its mouth, and its once glowing red eyes dimmed and glossed over with haze.

"Did we…Pull it off?" Asbel asked, sheathing his sword but keeping his hand at the ready to draw it again if need be. "I think…We did." Answering himself he dropped his hand and visibly, his guard; shoulders falling to a relaxed position.

"Can we never fight one of those things ever again?" I suggested, putting away my guns and groaning as I fell back and on my ass to wheeze.

"What did you say it was? A Nova Wolf?" I shook my head and closed my eyes, too tired to give an explanation. "Hey, you okay?" Hearing concern in his tone I glance up at him, meeting an offered hand and a sincerely worried face. I nodded, being pulled up as I took the offer. "What's your name?"

I gave a subtle shake of his hand with an exhausted but real smile.

"Destiney…" Malik was approaching, giving a loud shout of Asbel's name with the two soldiers at his heels. "My name is Destiney Cheatham." It would be great if I could just pass out right now.

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**Changes may be made to this and previous chapters in the future, due to my ever present need to make things detailed. I want my readers to be able to put themselves in my stories and be able to feel what the characters are going through.  
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**Of course, these changes will not get in the way of plot or what happens in the story, just put more detail to the events that occur.**

**V**

**See that box?**

**V**

**Fill it with nice things.**


	3. Fight Scene

**Something I've noticed is a little lack of realism in the beginning chapters of a self-insert. I'm going to be honest instead of going 'awesome' after waking up in a Tales game I would be freaking the fuck out. I would be throwing up from anxiety and crying in shear panic. So, instead of the casual 'it's all rainbows from here' all you readers get to see Destiney have herself a heart attack.**

**I don't own Tales of Graces nor any of its characters. I do own Destiney and will try my best to make sure she doesn't become a Mary Sue.**

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All I wanted to do was curl up into a ball and sleep. I just wanted to close my eyes and reopen them to find out that it had all been just a bad dream and that I was back in my room, with the controller in my hand.

Instead, I'm staring down at the corpse of a very dead and bloody Nova Wolf; the very same Nova Wolf that both I and Asbel had just killed.

'Asbel,' one of the main characters in the game Tales of Graces, one of the many characters that the player could choose to play as during an adventure that would take them through a world of Tales. 'Asbel,' as in Asbel Llhant: heir to lordship in the Llhant family; of the town of Llhant. Brother to Hubert and friend of many, _that '_Asbel.'

I glanced over to such swordsman. The redhead was presently talking to one Malik Caesar. The larger of the two turned up his head and locked eyes with me, causing me to quickly look down. I took a deep breath, thoughts going miles a minute. 'This is real,' I pitched the side of my arm, wincing at the sting.

There was no point in make believing that I was in a dream; people don't feel pain in dreams. I felt my body start to shake and my legs turn suddenly weak. My stomach tumbled with butterflies and they were not the good kind.

'Fuck, this is all real,' I grabbed the nearby wall and leaned my back against it, panic and disbelief was beginning to collide in my head and turned my guts, making me feel as though I was going to be sick. 'I'm in the actual game.' I'm in Tales of Graces; I had just killed an actual monster while fighting beside the actual Asbel Llhant.

I was becoming lightheaded and lowered myself to sit with my legs pulled up to my chest, leaning my head in between them. 'Calm down, get yourself together.' My mind was right; I had to think this through, I needed a backstory and I needed one fast.

If I was in Tales of Graces then with the events I had to be in Orlen Village, meaning I was in the beginnings of the adulthood arc. From what I remembered, Orlen had been attacked by monsters; the Nova Wolf. 'I just stumbled into a place that's not supposed to have any survivors,' how could use this to my advantage?

"Miss, are you alright?" I glanced up to meet one of the soldiers I had seen talking to Malik. His mask was still on, but I could see the faint glimmer of brown eyes. Despite the loud sounding armor this guy wore, I hadn't heard him walk up. I nodded my head, trying not to seem suspicious. "You're crying."

My brows came up on their own; I lifted my hand and met wet tears on my cheeks. I gave a loud sniff and tried to dry them away with my sleeve. "I'm…I'm sorry, I didn't even realize I was crying." I gave a choked out laugh, trying to brush it off. My mental breakdown would have to wait; right now I had lies to tell.

"No, don't be sorry…It can be a lot to take in." I nodded, he had no idea. He placed his hand on my shoulder and dropped himself to one knee, making it so I didn't have to look up all the time. "Is your-" He broke off his sentence with a sigh before squeezing his hand a bit. "I'm sorry, Miss. We've looked everywhere and have found no signs of anyone else being alive." I realized now where the pity was coming from and gasped, quickly covering my mouth with my hand. He instantly flinched away, taking his hand back and standing abruptly before bowing his head, reacting as though I had taken a turn for the worst. "I-I'm sorry, Miss. I shouldn't have said anything!" I turned my head down and took a long and shuddery breath before waving him off with a shake of my head.

"No, it's okay." I could use this as my background, if I was to say I was from Orlen with no living family then people wouldn't bring it up or question about it much. I could just say that I was out of town for a while before the attack happened and that I just came back to see everything destroyed. My momentary shock and panic would be explainable and make the lie seem all the more believable.

"What's your name, Miss?" I ran my hand through my hair for the umpteenth time and gave a small shallow sigh of exhaustion. 'Here goes nothing,' I thought.

"Destiney," he nodded, armor clanking as he did.

"Can you tell me what happened here, Destiney?" I couldn't just go on with what the game had, it was be too convenient. If I just said it was a monster attack chances were he would ask something I wouldn't be able to answer. Before the pause grew to long between asking and answering, I gave a short shake of my head.

"I wasn't here." I lied, "I was out of town on errands. I ru-ran, small jobs for the Inn." I corrected myself and sighed, cupping my hands together and setting my arms on my knees. "Taking about two or three jobs at a time, I'm usually out for a while but now that I'm back I…" I shook my head and buried my face into my arm, wheezing slightly before I looked back up. "I'm sorry," I apologized and wiped at my eyes. "This is all my fault."

He reacted as I thought he would and shook his head in a panic. "N-No, it's not your fault." He paused, probably choosing his words. "The town's people and your family wouldn't have wanted you to blame yourself." I almost felt sorry for lying to the nice man but at least it got my story in stone.

"Thank you, really." I said to him, he gave me a short nod before giving me thanks and walked away. I sighed under my breath and attempted to stand, my legs feeling a bit numb but kept me up. I wrapped my arms around myself and noticed the soldier walking over to his comrade and Malik; who was talking to him.

I glanced to Asbel and noticed him making his way over, concern on his face. "You okay?" I gave him a little nod. "I, uh…I overheard." He fidgeted with the fabric of his coat pocket before stuffing his hand in it. "Do you think you might have any other family you could stay with?" I shrugged my shoulders and bit my lip.

"I think I may have some in Llhant but it's been a while since I've seen them." I lied, digging the toe of my shoe in the ground. "I'm not sure if their even still there or not." When I looked back up at him, he seemed a little shocked, causing my mind to scream in panic.

Suddenly he grinned and clenched his hand into a fist. "That's great, I'm from Llhant." He chuckled and gave me an enthusiastic smile, one that shined 'don't worry about it.'

"Lord Aston is my dad, if you do have family there that might have moved, he could tell you where." I stared at him.

"Lord Aston is your dad…?" I let my eyes get wide before I pointed at him. "You're Asbel Llhant?!" Malik had called his name before Asbel could tell me it during our introduction, it was better for him to just tell me himself than cause an accident by calling him out.

Just to break tension I stopped pointing and crossed my arms. "I thought you'd be taller." His face fell as he practically tripped over thin air. I giggled, though I was still upset and in the middle of a nervous breakdown, the small little laugh did wonders for my anxiety.

"Asbel, we're finished here." I about leapt up out of my skin from the voice that had come from behind me and turned to come face to face with massive chest. Glancing up to the man it belonged to I managed a weak "Hello," and backed away.

Malik was a tall man, the fact was pointed out often in the game but up close, his height was threatening. Both I and Asbel only came up to his chest and with the man wearing boots, I guessed he was at least six foot one.

He glanced from his pupil, to me and seemed to notice that I was nervous. Then with a small smile, he gave me a small nod of the head in hello. "Miss, Destiney." I nodded back, he was smiling and I knew the man had good intentions to make me feel better but, knowing he could crush me if he wanted, it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand. "My name is Malik, the soldiers informed me about your situation."

I gave a small 'oh' before Asbel chipped in. "She says she may have family in Llhant, sir." Malik looked back to me and raised a brow.

"From Asbel's hometown?" I gave another short nod and earned a small chuckle. "Well, we're headed for Barona anyways, why not come along?" I was mentally cheering; I had just got myself a temporary spot in Asbel's group.

"I would like that, sir." Malik's smile turned into a grin at my answer. With a nod of his head he gave directions to Asbel.

"Then it's settled. You'll follow with us to Barona. Asbel, we'll head back the way we came, you can take point." The swordsman gave a small salute and started to walk ahead. Both I and Malik followed at his heels. I couldn't hold back my smile 'Great, now all I have to do is make sure that it stays this way.' As we headed towards the Orlen Village gate, I started planning on how I would be able to stay permanently in the group.

* * *

Faint sunlight shined through the tree branches to light up the path we walked. I hear a variety of chirps from birds and the subtle shifting of the surrounding bushes with the breeze. Faintly there's the sound of rushing water, a stream perhaps?

As I looked around I noticed some unfamiliar flowers, flora that probably didn't even exist on Earth. I ran through my head the list of plants that were meant to be discoveries in the game; for Orlen Woods there was supposed to be a flower here used for medicine but I couldn't remember its name.

"Can you fight, Destiney?" I glanced at Malik. The man had been walking beside me during the few minutes we had walked.

Honestly, no I couldn't. Sure, I could pretend pretty well but the most I knew about using a gun was to just point, aim and shoot. I didn't know if that was all there was to it or if there was some big complex step process I had to follow but I figured that, what I didn't know I was going to learn about from now until whenever I died.

"To be honest, sir? Not very well." Asbel gave a loud hum from in front of our team and turned to look at me over his shoulder.

"You did okay a little while ago," Earning a snort as I turned up my shoulders in a shrug.

"That was a fluke, I had no idea what I was doing." Hell, my arms were still sore from the fight. "When I did errands for the town I actually ran from the monsters more than I did fight them." Malik made a small sound and scratched his chin.

"You're weapons are quite unusual, for Orlen." My mind was suddenly working overtime, 'Shit, that's right! Only people from the military use guns.' I fought to keep myself calm and collected on the outside, when on the inside I was hectically trying to come up with something to say.

"They were a present from…my dad." I lied.

"What did your father do for a living, Destiney?" Malik egged on.

"Honesty, we didn't talk about it a lot. He was retired but whenever I asked him what he did he'd just tell me talk to mom." I rubbed the back of my neck and gave Malik a look. "I don't really wanna think about them right now." He gave me a nod and we dropped the topic from there. I tried not to think about whether he bought it or not, if I was going to do it all the time then I would turn into a paranoid nut and then people would _really_ get suspicious.

'But what am I supposed to do, just come out and tell them I'm an alien?' I frowned at the thought 'Oh hey guys, I'm from a different planet where all of this is a video game! Oh and get this, you're the main characters.' Yeah, I didn't feel like being called crazy and having a sword drawn to my neck.

'I'm gonna have to get a book or something, a journal.' I worried about them maybe stumbling upon it and finding out my secret but quickly dashed away the worry. 'No, no, stop panicking.' That in mind, I decided on finding a notebook once we got to Barona.

With nothing left to do but just think myself into hysteria I gave the surroundings another look. Orlen Woods didn't look any different from any other woods on Earth, just a few different plants and sounds. The breeze felt nice and the smell of grass was relaxing. At the sound of a shifting bush I cringed; reminded of one major difference this world and the other had.

'Let's see, the enemies here are Filifolia, Wolf, and Axe Beak, right?' I remembered squealing like a fangirl when I first got to play Asbel as an adult and now here I was, following behind him as he led the team.

It kicked up butterflies in my stomach. 'At least I won't have to fight alone, huh?' I mentally nodded at the thought. The Nova Wolf had been tough enough to kill; if Asbel hadn't been there to help I wouldn't have been able to do shit, especially after the thing called its guard.

"Wait." I stopped mid-step at Asbel's command, blinking up at him as he glanced from left to right before grabbing his sword. My heart leapt up in my throat, only to be swallowed thickly back down in one big gulp.

"Monster's?" I asked and saw him give a nod of his head. Taking a deep breath I reached back and drew my guns. "Great." I heard the shift of Malik drawing his own weapon and saw him take a step forward.

"Why not show me what you can do, Destiney?" My eyes widened at his suggestion. Turning back forward I gave a hurried nod, not really wanting to but fuck, did I really have a choice now? 'Try not to look like an idiot.' My inner voice declared reminding me that the first thing to do was turn off the safety.

I took a deep breath and decided that it was time to be badass, a bush nearby shifted and slowly I stepped towards it, aiming carefully for whatever was to leap out. 'My body is ready!'

I proceed to squeak like a mouse and ran my ass closer to Malik. The snaps of twigs and rustle of leaves meet my ears, followed by the loud growling snarl of a Wolf. I turned back around to see the animal caught off guard and stumbling where I had once stood, obviously not expecting to _not _run into something.

At a distance now, I locked a gun back on the wild animal and let off a round of shots. With my piss poor aim most of the bullets miss for a few shots, until one makes contact with its head. I give a whoop of victory as the monster tumbles over, clearly dead.

Now, considering it looks like a normal wolf and acts like a normal wolf, someone from Earth would assume that it is a normal wolf and will die like a normal wolf. I am that someone from Earth that would assume such a thing.

But then I heard Malik give a shout of "Guard!" and realize my mistake. I turn my eyes back where the animal should have been lying dead, only to see that it's back on all four feet and running towards me at full speed. Not really knowing what to do I throw up my arms in a crisscross fashion in front of me and ready myself for the force of being knocked into.

White hot pain coursed through my right arm and momentarily blinds me. I feel its jaw lock around and teeth dig into my skin, puncturing and grinding down. I force open my eyes and lock my legs in place, feeling the Wolf push its weight against me, trying to get me to fall. 'If you do your dead, it'll lock its teeth on your throat and kill you!' Animal Planet does me justice and I try to push back, gritting my teeth as its fangs dig deeper.

"Hold on!" I don't care to look for Mailk knowing that he and Asbel are fighting off two Axe Beaks on their side, leaving me to fight just the one Wolf. I huff in pain and frustration; Asbel saved me about three times against the Nova Wolf, I couldn't let it turn into a habit, I'd be dead weight for the group!

It hurts like a bitch; having to keep pushing against the force of the monster and keep steady on my feet at the same time. I struggle to lift my left arm out from guarding; whimpering as the wolf snarls and digs its teeth in deeper.

It shifts its head and I scream, feeling it shake from left to right and drag its teeth across my skin, I give up trying to push against it, about lost my footing but manage to get my left arm free. I press my gun against the things head, and start pistol whipping the hell out of it.

In pain, the creature lets go to make a run for it but in hopes for revenge I lock my gun right on it and shoot, not giving the bastard the chance to get far. Close enough that the majority of the bullets are able make contact with it, the monster yelps; unmoving. I figured I had somehow stunned it and keep shooting with the advantage. 'Take that and that and that!'

I manage to step towards it as I fire. As I get right up in front of it, I stop shooting and draw back one of my legs before whamming it hard against the things skull, giving it the best kick I could muster. I grinned as I heard the wolf give a satisfying yelp, in victory I pumped my fists in the air before crying in pain from my wound.

It hurt like hell but at least I got even.

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed this update, please let me know if you see any mistakes that I may have missed.**

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